NFL 2010 Season Review: Pittsburgh Steelers Game Predictions

Prior to the start of the 2010 NFL season, every fan of every team has high hopes, thinking that 2010 could be the year for their team to take the next step. As a Pittsburgh Steelers fan, we had a lot to think about writing these, based on the offseason turmoil surrounding the Steelers.

Week 2 @ Tennessee Titans

The Steelers defense was even more dominant that I expected them to be. Though the Steelers kept the Titans to only 11 points, I was still pretty close.

I said that if the Titans were going to win, it was not because of Chris Johnson, and that Vince Young would have to lead the team through the air. Didn't happen, as Young was pulled from the game in favor of Kerry Collins, and Collins looked more scared than anything.

Week 3 @ Tampa Bay Buccaneers

The Steelers held the Buccaneers to under 100 total yards, until the fourth quarter, when they rested their starters.

Tampa Bay would go on to come only one game from making the playoffs, which means that this team was actually better than they played in this game. Probably has to do with the dominant defense that the Steelers have.

Week 4 VS Baltimore Ravens

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Original Prediction:

Steelers - 24

Ravens - 21

Final Score:

Steelers - 14

Ravens - 17

Though the Steelers failed at the clean sweep without Ben Roethlisberger, they held the Ravens until the final minute of the game, when Bryant McFadden gave up a TD to TJ Whosyourdaddy (I refuse to write his correct name since he defaced the Terrible Towel).

Week 9 @ Cincinnati Bengals

Jared Wickerham/Getty Images

Original Prediction:

Steelers - 28

Bengals - 24

Final Score:

Steelers - 27

Titans - 21

The Steelers had a serious chip on their shoulders, having not only lost the 2009 AFC North crown to the Bengals, but being swept along the way. The Black and Gold were out for revenge, and they got it.

Week 12 @ Buffalo Bills

Rick Stewart/Getty Images

Original Prediction:

Steelers - 27

Bills - 6

Final Score:

Steelers - 19

Bills - 16 (OT)

Though the Bills are a much better team than I thought they were going to be, and are a lot better than their record indicates, they were still just a dropped TD pass in over time from defeating the Steelers.

Week 15 Vs New York Jets

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Original Prediction:

Steelers - 23

Jets - 17

Final Score:

Steelers - 17

Jets - 22

I hated seeing Santonio Holmes in another teams uniform. True, Mike Wallace may not have had the growth that we saw this year if Tone was still on the team. But, Holmes always seemed to make a big play. Imagine Wallace, with Holmes on the opposite side. Would have been fun to watch.

Week 16 Vs Carolina Panthers

Jared Wickerham/Getty Images

Original Prediction:

Steelers - 24

Panthers - 0

Final Score:

Steelers - 27

Panthers - 3

Was it just me, or were you furious when the Panthers decided to kick a short field goal, down by 27 points in the third quarter? That was pretty much the point I knew that the Panthers had to fire John Fox. He showed no guts!

Hopefully, Mike Holmgren will decide that John Fox would be the perfect fit to coach the Browns.

Week 17 @ Cleveland Browns

Matt Sullivan/Getty Images

Original Prediction:

Steelers - 21

Browns - 9

Final Score:

Steelers - 41

Browns - 9

Had I known that the Steelers needed to win this game, I would have made the score much different. Had the Steelers sat Roethlisberger, Polamalu, Mendenhall, and the others I said, the score probably would have been closer to my prediction.

Conclusion

Jared Wickerham/Getty ImagesYes, this is the same picture I used as the conclusion to the last article.

This is what I said in my conclusion to my original article.

I have the Steelers finishing with a record of 13-3, winning the AFC North, and having one of the top two seeds in the NFL.

Why? The Steelers' defense will carry them.

Pittsburgh has one of the best defenses in the NFL. They will again be the top rated team against the run, and in the top three against the pass.

Many of the people think that because Ben Roethlisberger is suspended for the first four games of the season, that the Steelers are in trouble.

In their first four games, they have games at home against the Falcons and Ravens, while their away games are against the Titans, and the Buccaneers.

There have been times in the last decade or so, that a team has had a horrible offense (2000 Ravens and 2002 Buccaneers), and because of a great defense, they were able to win the Super Bowl.

Pittsburgh was ranked seventh in the NFL in offense last year, and just because Ben Roethlisberger is going to miss four games, that does not mean that the rest of the team is going to fall apart.

Honestly though, it is better for the Steelers that everyone outside of Steelers Nation thinks they are going to be terrible. Pittsburgh plays better when they have a chip on their collective shoulder, and the chip right now is around the size of the Century III Mall.

I think it is safe to say that I was pretty accurate. The Steelers did win the AFC North, and have the two seed, and the first round bye that goes along with it.

Though I was two games off, I think I was pretty close with most of my picks.